Judge’s delivers damning verdict on alleged ‘amateur hour’ hitman accused of targeting King of the Cross John Ibrahim: ‘Extremely dangerous’

A young carpenter and ‘pillar of the church’ has made a desperate bid for release after allegedly bungled an attempted punch on Sydney nightlife figure John Ibrahim.

Siaosi Maeakafa Tupoulah, 24, appeared in the Sydney High Court on Tuesday in a bid for bail as he faces multiple charges over the alleged botched hit.

Police allege that on July 25, Tupoulahi pointed a Glock pistol at a woman driving her young child after mistaking her black Range Rover SUV as belonging to Mr. Ibrahim.

Driver and co-suspect Youssef Zrayka, who failed in a bail bid last week, is said to have driven off on a short chase that ended after the pair got stuck in traffic.

Both men were subsequently charged with conspiracy to murder Mr Ibrahim, as well as firearms offenses after police reportedly found the Glock and a revolver in the car.

In his request for release, Tupoulah’s lawyer Ben Barrack argued that he should spend two years in custody awaiting trial after indicating his intention to fight the charges.

He described the carpenter as ‘completely expendable’ and if released he would be of no use to whoever planned the alleged hit – with the planning ‘not his fault’.

Crucially, Mr Barrack said the Crown would have to prove Tupoulah had been in the busy Dover Heights street to kill Mr Ibrahim, not to extort or rob him.

Judge Desmond Fagan said it would be up to the jury to make that decision, and in refusing Tupoulah’s release he described him as ‘a man who is extremely dangerous’.

“If he was there to shoot someone, as he has in the past, he could have shot the wrong person — or he could have shot the person he was trying to shoot,” he said.

Reporting that no bullets were fired, he added: “(That is) very fortunate for people unwise enough to drive a motor vehicle similar to Mr Ibrahim’s.”

Judge Fagan ruled against Mr Barrack, saying the alleged incident was ‘amateur hour’ and that Mr Tupoulah, who was in custody for the first time, did not pose a risk.

“He could be a pillar of the church. “He could be a saint in every respect, but when he’s caught on a residential street with two deadly weapons, when he’s obviously in a position to kill someone, that just goes out the window,” Judge Fagan said, adding that the pair would have been arrested in prison. traffic was ‘a trap for young players’ in crime.

Judge Fagan ultimately rejected the bail application despite a proposed house arrest, citing the risk to the community and that the ‘Crowd case was of very great force’.

The two men were believed to be wearing balaclavas and gloves

The Crown previously played a video of the alleged incident in court, which showed the car the pair were believed to be in stopped at a T-junction with the Range Rover behind them.

The video is said to show Tupoulah getting out of the vehicle in the Crown case, although Mr Barrack disputed whether it was clear he had raised a firearm at the car.

A second video shows police searching the car the couple was believed to have been transported in, where they found a Glock loaded with three bullets and a fourth chamber.

A second gun, a high-caliber revolver, was also in the video and contained five bullets; There were also two jerry cans with an accelerator in the car.

Police allege that co-suspect, Youssef Zrayka, drove past Mr Ibrahim’s Dover Heights home before parking down the street shortly after 7am and lying in wait with his co-suspect.

While monitoring the house, police claim the pair spotted a Range Rover matching Mr Ibrahim’s description as Zrayka pulled the car into the middle of the street.

Tupoulahi allegedly swung open the back door before realizing the vehicle did not belong to their alleged target. A few minutes later the pair saw another Range Rover.

Zrayka drove into the road to block the black-colored SUV, but again the pair targeted the wrong vehicle, police allege, and the driver contacted police minutes later.

Tupoulahi was arrested after allegedly resisting arrest

The 21-year-old made his own bid for release last week, with his lawyer Ertunc Ozen SC claiming police would have to prove his client only intended to kill Mr Ibrahim.

“The facts show that these two were not in the area for innocent purposes… but the amount of evidence shows nothing more than a criminal offense, which could be one of many,” he said.

‘The Crown will have to establish that these two people were part of a determined plan to commit the murder of Mr Ibrahim, and not to commit a carjacking or extortion, … or to make a threat. ‘

Judge Mark Ierace rejected the bail bid on grounds of unacceptable risks, including that Zrayka could endanger the community by having a gun in public.

Zrayka and Tuploulah were both charged with conspiracy to commit murder, possession of a loaded firearm in public and taking a car without consent.

The pair will appear in court again next month, when evidence is expected to be served.